ai4bharat/Pralekha huggingface dataset:
Ministry of Education
Steps taken by the Government to reduce the loss of students’ education in lockdown period
Government has formulated and implemented various plans to reduce the loss of students’ education in recent lockdown period. Norms have been relaxed to allow more institutes to offer open and distance learning courses to make-up for loss due to lock down period.
The University Grants Commission  has notified the revised UGC  Regulations, 2020 for inclusion of more universities in September, 2020 by bringing down the National Assessment and Accreditation Council  score and universities ranking norms under National Institution Ranking Framework . These details are available on University Grants Commission ’s website at http://www.ugc.ac.in/pdfnews/221580.pdf.
The All India Council for Technical Education  has notified comprehensive guidelines in March, 2021 in order to relax the norms for making ODL & On-line education more accessible by technical institutions for courses such as management and allied areas, computer applications, artificial intelligence and data science in the engineering & technology domain.
Forty two new universities  and fifty one institutions  respectively were allowed to offer various programmes. Further, National Institute of Open Schooling  also opened 583 new study centres in various states from October, 2020 to June, 2021 to provide better facilities to the students
A comprehensive initiative called PM eVIDYA has been initiated which unifies all efforts related to digital/online/on-air education to enable multi-mode access to education. The initiative includes:
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- Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing  the nation’s digital infrastructure for providing quality e-content for school education in states/UTs and QR coded Energized Textbooks for all grades 
- One earmarked Swayam Prabha TV channel per class from 1 to 12 
- Extensive use of Radio, Community radio and Central Board of Secondary Education  Podcast- Shiksha Vani
- Special e-content, for visually and hearing impaired, developed on Digitally Accessible Information System  and in sign language on National Institute of Open Schooling  website/ YouTube
Various digital initiatives are being undertaken by Ministry of Education viz. Study Webs of Active–Learning for Young Aspiring Minds , SWAYAM Prabha, National Digital Library , Virtual Lab, e-Yantra, Free Open-Source Software for Education , etc. to ensure quality education to the students. Quality Online courses are provided through SWAYAM which is an indigenously developed MOOCs  platform.
The initiatives taken by the Government for school education are available in public domain. Link of the same is https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/DOSEL_COMPILATION_ON_COVID_ACTIVITIES.pdf
This information was given by the Union Minister of Education, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha today.
Competition Commission of India
CCI approves acquisition by Bank of India  of BOI AXA Investment Managers Private Limited and BOI AXA Trustee Services Private Limited
The Competition Commission of India  approves acquisition by Bank of India  of BOI AXA Investment Managers Private Limited  and BOI AXA Trustee Services Private Limited  under Section 31 of the Competition Act, 2002, today.
The proposed combination involves the acquisition of 49 % of the total share capital of BOI AXA IM & BOI AXA TS by BOI. Consequently, BOI will become sole owner of BOI AXA IM & BOI AXA TS and sole sponsor of BOI AXA Mutual Fund. Pursuant to the Proposed Combination, BOI shall remain in banking business and continue to distribute Mutual Fund product including that of the target entities.
BOI is public sector bank constituted under the banking Companies  Act, 1970.
BOI AXA IM is a private limited company, incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956. It acts as assets management company to BOI AXA Mutual Fund.
BOI AXA TS is also a private limited company, incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956. It provides trustee service to BOI AXA Mutual Fund.
Detailed order of the CCI will follow.
Special Service and Features
It is imperative to utilize the full potential of public transport system by 2047: Shri Hardeep Singh Puri
Union Minister Addresses Media Persons on the side-lines of the Urban Mobility India  Conference in Kochi
Kochi: November 04, 2022
Union Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri said that the objective was to fully utilize the potential of urban transport systems including buses and metros by 2047.
The Union Minister was addressing media persons on the side-lines of the Urban Mobility India  Conference and Expo 2022 in Kochi today. He added that a psychological transition was essential to encourage citizens to shift from private vehicles to the public transport system.
Pointing out the initiatives being taken by the government to create a parallel system of fuel using all possibilities, the Minister pointed out that remarkable progress had been made in bringing down the cost per unit of solar panels. There was also a movement to produce ethanol from agriculture waste, maze and bamboo apart from sugar.
Regarding the progress being made in the construction of smart cities, the Union Minister said that smart cities including the one in Kochi were at different stages of completion despite the challenges posed by Covid.
RRTN/SKY
(Visitor Counter : 26
Election Commission
CEC Shri Sushil Chandra addresses officials from Bangladesh Election Commission 50 officials of Bangladesh Election Commission being trained at IIIDEM
Chief Election Commissioner of India Shri Sushil Chandra today addressed the Officials of Bangladesh Election Commission  at India International Institute of Democracy & Election Management, New Delhi. IIIDEM under the aegis of Election Commission of India is organizing the Capacity Development Programme for the BEC officials as part of Strengthening and Capacity Development of Election Commission Secretariat project  of the Bangladesh Election Commission.
Addressing the officials, Chief Election Commissioner Shri Sushil Chandra said that IIIDEM, as the dedicated training institute of ECI, has been organizing a series of such Capacity Development Programmes for officials from various Election Management Bodies . So far IIIDEM has trained officials from over 90 countries. Recently a 2-weeks training programme was also organized for officials of the National Electoral Commission of Sierra Leone. A-WEB research centre for coordinating capacity building courses for A-WEB member countries is also housed at IIIDEM. CEC while interacting with the participants added that these training sessions provide a platform to share and mutually learn best practices in election management. Such courses also provide an opportunity for officials to get a good exposure of each other’s methodology of conducting elections.
A total of 50 BEC officials are to be trained at IIIDEM as part of this Capacity Development Programme. In the first phase during November 29- December 10, 2021, 25 BEC officials had undergone the training and the second batch of 25 BEC officials will be joining the training programme starting December 20, 2021 onwards. This is the first ever international batch being hosted by IIIDEM on a cost sharing basis with the BEC Secretariat. During the training programme, sessions on various aspects of election management including Electoral Administration, Voter Registration process, District Plans & Vulnerability mapping, Election Day monitoring including use of c-VIGIL app were held. As part of the field visits during the training programme, the Officials visited a Voter Registration Centre at Agra.
Ministry of Communications
Postal Pension Adalat for Maharashtra and Goa
Goa : 11 February 2022
The Chief Postmaster General, Maharashtra Circle, Mumbai will be holding the 50th Postal Pension Adalat for pensioners/ family pensioners of the Postal Department on 23rd March 2022 at 15.00 Hrs, in the Office of Chief Postmaster General. Maharashtra Circle, Mumbai -400 001.
Grievances regarding pensionary benefits pertaining to those who retired died while in service from Department of Posts, Pensioners of Postal Department. Maharashtra and Goa States, which have not been settled within 3 months, will be only entertained in the Postal Pension Adalat.
Physical attendance for pension Adalat should be avoided due to Covid-19 pandemic situation.
Cases involving purely legal points i.e. succession. Notional pension. TBOP/MACP Promotion, stepping up of pay and disciplinary cases involving policy matters, and cases pending for review of DPC will not be considered in Pension Adalat. Pensioners should forward their grievance individually  in triplicate in the proforma attached to Accounts Officer/ Secretary. Pension Adalat, O/o Chief Postmaster General, Maharashtra Circle, Mumbai GPO Bldg.. 2nd Floor, Mumbai -400 001 on or before 23rd February 2022. The applications received after 23rd February 2022 will not be considered in the Pension Adalat.
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DEPARTMENT OF POSTS
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APPLICATION FORM OF POSTAL PENSION ADALAT
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SR. No
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SUBJECT
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DETAILS TO BE FILLED IN BY THE INDIVIDUAL PENSIONER
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1
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Name of the pensioner/Family pensioner with Designation at the time retirement/Death
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2
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Name of Post Office from where retired etc and datrer of retirement
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3
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PPO No.
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4
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Name of the Post Office from where Pension is being drawn
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5
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Postal address of the pensioner with phone no.
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6
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Complaint in brief 
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7
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Date & signature of the Individual/Pensioner.
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Posts/VK/PM
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(Visitor Counter : 176
Prime Minister's Office
The way ahead is by popularising Yoga and traditional forms of Indian medicine in a language that the world understands: PM
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has reiterated the need to popularise Yoga through multidisciplinary research.
Replying to a citizen’s tweet, the Prime Minister said:
“Well said. The way ahead is by popularising Yoga and traditional forms of Indian medicine in a language that the world understands. I am happy to see greater awareness among our people on this too.”
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Government has come out with Nationwide Roadmap for Eliminating Measles and Rubella
Need to strengthen surveillance, immunization, timely detection and public awareness
December 22, 2022
The government has taken note of the recent upsurge in measles infection in certain states of the country. As on 12th December, a total of 3,075 infections and 13 deaths due to measles had been reported from the state of Maharashtra. A few other states have also reported measles infections in the year 2022.
Taking note of upsurge of cases from certain districts/cities of Jharkhand, Gujarat and Kerala, the Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare deployed multi-disciplinary central teams comprising public health specialists, paediatricians and microbiologists to assess the situation and provide technical support to the states.
The central teams noted need for further strengthening of disease surveillance activities, ramping up immunization with measles-containing vaccines, managing vaccine hesitancy through intensive community awareness to cover all unimmunized children, improving case management through timely detection and referral and clinical management of cases. The findings of the central teams along with their recommendations were also formally conveyed to these states to enable them to take suitable necessary action to manage the upsurge of measles cases in the community. The Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has coordinated with States/UTs to assist in the management of these cases.
Accordingly, a roadmap for Measles and Rubella Elimination has been prepared and distributed to the States and UTs across India. The roadmap serves as a guidance tool for planning the elimination activities including strengthening of Measles and Rubella vaccine coverage and surveillance. Check out the roadmap here.
In addition, specific advisories have been issued to Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand, regarding key actions to be taken following outbreaks as a part of outbreak response.
A national workshop too has been conducted for apprising the officers of the states and union territories regarding measles and rubella elimination.
This information was given by the Union Minister of State for Health & Family Welfare, Dr. Bharti Pravi Pawar, in a written reply to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha, answered on December 20, 2022.
Cabinet
Cabinet approves MoU on Urea manufacturing Plant in Malaysia
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its ex-post facto approval to the signing of Memorandum of Understanding with Malaysia on development of a Urea and Ammonia manufacturing plant in Malaysia with off take to India and/or off take of existing surplus Urea from Malaysia to India.
The project is expected to cost US$ 2.1 billion with capacity to produce 2.4 million tonnes of Urea and 1.35 million tonnes of Ammonia per annum and dedicated supplying to Indian market.
The signing of MoU will ensure consistent supply of Urea and Ammonia to cater the need of the country at a lower price, if agreed to by both the participants.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
India’s Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage exceeds 186.38 Cr
Over 2.40Cr 1st dose vaccines administered for age group 12-14 years
India's Active caseload currently stands at11,366
975 new cases reported in the last 24 hours
Recovery Rate currently stands at 98.76%
Weekly Positivity Rate is presently at 0.26%
India’s COVID-19 vaccination coverage has exceeded 186.38 Cr  as per provisional reports till 7 am today. This has been achieved through 2,26,92,477sessions.
COVID-19 vaccination for the age group 12-14 years was started on 16 March, 2022. So far, more than 2.40 Cr  adolescents have been administered with the first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. Similarly, the COVID-19 precaution dose administration for age group 18-59 years also started from 10th April, 2022 onwards. 1,10,212precaution doses have been administered so far.
The break-up of the cumulative figure as per the provisional report till 7 am today include:
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Cumulative Vaccine Dose Coverage
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HCWs
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1st Dose
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1,04,04,316
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2nd Dose
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1,00,07,750
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Precaution Dose
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45,85,873
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FLWs
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1st Dose
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1,84,14,253
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2nd Dose
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1,75,25,215
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Precaution Dose
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71,12,025
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Age Group 12-14 years
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1st Dose
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2,40,16,391
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2nd Dose
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57,147
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Age Group 15-18 years
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1st Dose
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5,78,45,181
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2nd Dose
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4,03,05,973
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Age Group 18-44 years
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1st Dose
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55,52,21,431
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2nd Dose
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47,22,70,506
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Precaution Dose
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24,335
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Age Group 45-59 years
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1st Dose
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20,28,45,688
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2nd Dose
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18,67,02,436
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Precaution Dose
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85,877
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Over 60 years
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1st Dose
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12,68,10,089
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2nd Dose
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11,62,97,530
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Precaution Dose
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1,32,99,707
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Precaution Dose
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2,51,07,817
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Total
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1,86,38,31,723
India’s Active Caseload currently stands at11,366.Active cases now constitute 0.03% of the country's total Positive Cases.
Consequently, India’s recovery rate stands at 98.76%. 796patients have recovered in the last 24 hours and the cumulative tally of recovered patients  is now at 4,25,07,834.
975new cases were reported in the last 24 hours.
The last 24 hours saw a total of 3,00,918COVID-19tests being conducted. India has so far conducted over 83.14Cr  cumulative tests.
There has been a sustained fall in the weekly Positivity Rate too. Weekly Positivity Rate in the country currently stands at 0.26% and the Daily Positivity rate is also reported to be 0.32%.
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
Government issues advisory to streamline the process for import and possession of exotic live species in India.
Exotic live species are animal or plant species moved from their original range  to a new one. These species are introduced to a new location most often by people. Manycitizen of the country have kept CITES 
enlisted exotic animal species in their possession but there is no unified information system available of such stock of species at the State/Central level. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has decided to collect stock information from the holders of such species through voluntary disclosure in next six months.
The registration will be done for the stock of animals, new progeny, as well as for import and exchange. This will help in better management of the species and guide the holders about proper veterinary care, housing and other aspects of well-being of the species. The database of exotic animals will also help in control and management of zoonotic diseases on which guidance would be available from time to time to ensure safety of animals and humans.
The declarer would not be required to produce any documentation in relation to the exotic live species if the same has been declared within six months of the date of issue of the advisory. For any declaration made after 6 months, the declarer shall be required to comply with the documentation requirement under the extant laws and regulations.
Holders of such species have to visit the website and fill up the requisite forms in order to complete the stock registration process.
For detailed advisory Click here
Ministry of Railways
Indo Nepal Rail connectivity gets a vital boost
Jayanagar-Kurtha rail connectivity between India and Nepal will be extended up to Bijalpura by March 2021
East Central Railway  , IRCON and KRCL come together to ensure the vital link takes shape
Government of India has spent nearly Rs 550 crores for the section up to Bijalpura which is further 17 km from Kurtha
After Bijalpura, new line will be constructed till Bardibas after Government of Nepal hands over land for the project
Indian Railways is extending full cooperation to Nepal in running the BG passenger service by sharing the know-how and operations and maintenance processes
The section Jayanagar-Kurtha, 34.90 Km is a part of Jaynagar-Bijalpura-Bardibas rail  project which has entirely been funded by Government of India. As first phase of this project, the rail line from Jayanagar in Madhubani district, Bihar has been connected to Kurtha in Nepal and will be extended up to Bijalpura by March 2021. Government of India has spent nearly Rs 550 Crores for the section up to Bijalpura which is further 17 km from Kurtha. After Bijalpura, new line will be constructed till Bardibas after Government of Nepal hands over land for the project.
Jayanagar is 4 Km from the India-Nepal border. This route has Janakpur, the famous pilgrim centre in Nepal which is 29 Kms from Jayanager. This project is being undertaken by IRCON and all rail engineering and infrastructure works are complete. To operate rail service on this route, 2 sets of 1600 HP DEMU passenger rakes have been supplied by Konkan Rail Corporation Limited . These 2 DEMU rakes have 2 AC coaches each apart from non-AC coaches. These 2 rakes were handed over to Nepal on 18th September, 2020. This will be the first Broad Gauge passenger rail service in Nepal. Prior to this till 2014 a narrow gauge service was running between Jayanagar and Janakpur operated by Nepal. Indian Railways is extending full cooperation to Nepal in running the BG service by sharing the know-how and operations and maintenance processes with Nepal Railway Company as well as imparting training to officials from Nepal. A draft Standard Operating Procedure  for starting passenger train operations in the section has been prepared and shared with Nepal Railways by Government of India. KRCL is being considered by Nepal Railway Company to run the operations and Maintenance  of this line till such time Nepal Railway Company is able to do this itself. Both Nepal and India are working together to start rail service between Jayanagar and Kurtha and it is hoped that after finishing the necessary technical and operational requirements, this service will be commenced soon.
Special Service and Features
Webinar on Ek Bharat Sreshta Bharat
Field Outreach Bureau Kottayam under the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting organised a webinar on 75 years of India's Independence-Keeping alive the Spirit of Ek Bharat Sreshta Bharat The webinar was organised in çoordination with students from MD Seminary Higher Secondary School, Kottayam and St.Ann's Higher Secondary School, Kottayam.
In this trying times of CoVID ,the need of the hour is to show our rich culture of humanity and unity and fight this pandemic,said Dr Neethu Sona IIS, Joint Director,Regional Outreach Bureau, Trivandrum. In the 75 years of India's Independence, this togetherness has helped us in facing any kind of challenges, she added.
Shri K Kunhikrishnan,former Addl.Director General, Doordarshan gave a broad spectrum on how the technical growth helped in the growth of the country. Further he discussed on the role played by the visual media in bringing people together and in knowing the unique culture , tradition, music,art forms, food culture etc. of the nation.
Students interacted with the guest speakers on various topics.
Smt Gigi Varghese, Programme Officer, MD Seminary, Kottayam, Smt.Sudha S Namboothiry, Assistant Director, Field Outreach Bureau, Kottayam and Shri T Sarinlal, Field Publicity Assistant spoke during the webinar.85 students participated in the Webinar.
Cabinet
Cabinet approves signing of the Protocol amending the Convention between India and Portugal for avoidance of Double Taxation
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for signing of a Protocol amending the Convention between India and Portugal for avoidance of double taxation. The Protocol will also ensure prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income.
Once the Protocol enters into force, both India and Portugal would be able to exchange tax related information, which will help tax authorities of both countries to curb tax evasion.
(Visitor Counter : 134
Prime Minister's Office
Meeting of Prime Minister with Prime Minister of Australia
- Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi met H.E. Mr Scott Morrison, Prime Minister of Australia on the sidelines of India-ASEAN and East Asia Summit 2019 at Bangkok on 04 November 2019.
- During the meeting both leaders reviewed the progress made in bilateral relationship and noted that frequent high level meetings and exchanges at all levels have created positive momentum in the relationship and reaffirmed their desire to further strengthen India-Australia bilateral relations.
- The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment for a free, open, transparent and inclusive Indo-Pacific region for promoting peace, security, stability and prosperity. The two leaders noted that the strategic and economic interests of both countries are converging , which opens up opportunities for working together bilaterally, regionally and multilaterally.
- Noting the enhanced engagement in defence and security fields, both sides agreed to enhance cooperation in maritime domain. The two leaders discussed the threat of extremism and terrorism and agreed to work closely to tackle this menace.
- Prime Minister Modi reiterated his invitation to Australian Prime Minister to visit India in January 2020 and to his keynote speech at Raisina Dialogue. Both leaders underlined the need to have thorough preparation to ensure a successful outcome from the visit.